A Yarraville child care centre and kindergarten has claimed that the proposed expansion of a nearby cement plant threatens the health and wellbeing of children in its care.
The claim is made in a statement of concern issued by Norfolk Street Child Care Centre and Yarraville Community Kindergarten against plans by Steele Cement to expand its manufacturing plant on the corner of Whitehall and Francis Street, less than 700 metres away.
Steel Cement is taking its $180 million expansion proposal, which would enable the plant to operate 24-hours-a-day, to the Victorian Civil and Administrative Tribunal (VCAT)next week after it was unanimously rejected by Maribyrnong council late last year.
In the statement of concern issued ahead of the VCAT hearing on June 16, Norfolk Street Child Care Centre and Yarraville Community Kindergarten manager, Sarah Mercieca, said the cement plant expansion would further damage the inner-west’s already poor air quality, posing an unacceptable risk to children in their care.
“As educators and community leaders, we have a responsibility to protect the environments in which children grow and learn,” Ms Mercieca said.
“Children in our services spend significant time outdoors – playing, learning, and breathing this air. They are not incidental stakeholders in this process; they are the most affected.”
The statement of concern notes that the World Health Organization recognises air pollution as the single greatest environmental health risk to children and that the proposed expansion site is inside the recommended one kilometre buffer zone between industrial activities and sensitive land uses such as early childhood centres.
The statement also argues the expansion runs contrary to Maribyrnong council’s Air Quality Improvement Plan, which prioritises reduced emissions and cleaner air near homes and schools.
“We support development that is safe, sustainable, and community-oriented. This proposal is none of those things,” Ms Mercieca said.
Steel Cement produces recycled cement and argued at last year’s council meeting that the expansion of its Yarraville plant, including the construction of two new sheds, a workshop and two grinding mills, would allow it to produce more environmentally sustainable ‘green’ cement.
Steel Cement didn’t respond to requests for comment.
